Russia changes name, no longer ‘special military operation’ for war in Ukraine.
After the referendum in Ukraine, Russia seems to be planning to change the name of the war in Ukraine.
“The special military operation can become an anti-terrorist operation after the recent referendums,” said the current head of Crimea, Sergey Aksyonov.
The special military operation will effectively become an anti-terrorist operation in case of the acceptance of Zaporozhzhia and Kherson regions to Russia, he declared.
“A certain point of no return will soon be passed. Obtaining a new status for the liberated territories will end the uncertainty. They will become full regions of the Russian Federation. And we will not effectively conduct a special operation, but an anti-terrorist operation in our territories,” Aksyonov said on his Telegram channel this Monday.
Speaking about the referendums in Donbas and the liberated territories, he also expressed his opinion that “the people of [these] regions have long decided on their legitimate choice”.
Referendums for the admission of these regions to Russia ended yesterday after they took place for 4 days from September 23-27.
On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to make a public statement during which he will officially address the results of the referendums as well as the direction Russia will take going forward.
In Moscow’s Red Square, a tribune has been erected with giant screens, videos, and billboards reading “Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson – Russia!”
Putin is expected to announce the annexation of Ukrainian territory by Friday, just days after he threatened that after accepting these regions as part of “Mother Russia”, he would defend Russia with nuclear weapons if necessary.
“The results are clear. Welcome home, to Russia!” Dmitry Medvedev, the former president who serves as the deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, said on Telegram after the results were released today.
The Russian-backed authorities claim to have conducted the referendums over the course of five days in territory that makes up about 15 percent of Ukraine.
Some of the residents who fled to Ukrainian-controlled territories in recent days have told of people being forced to mark their ballots in the streets by armed officials despite claims to the contrary by the pro-Russian side.